


Looking The Part

by Riddle_Me_This_Darling



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Self Confidence Issues, Short One Shot, Thomas Barrow Being Vain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-03-30
Updated: 2017-03-30
Packaged: 2018-10-12 22:16:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10500549
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Riddle_Me_This_Darling/pseuds/Riddle_Me_This_Darling
Summary: Whilst John Bates sits in a jail cell, Thomas Barrow is swanning about Downton, mighty pleased with himself as he is finally his Lordship's valet. Still, something isn't quite right. Ever a man of considerable vanity, Thomas admires his relfection and boosts his own ego.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to this fun, silly little one-shot.
> 
> I hope you enjoy Thomas being the vain, yet terribly self-conscious, insecure, mercurical bean that he is.

It had taken Thomas nine years to become his Lordship’s valet. Nine long years of plotting and scheming had finally paid off and here he was. Bates was locked up in a jail cell and quite frankly, Thomas couldn’t be happier. If he ever felt a niggle of guilt claw at his stomach when he caught sight of Anna looking pale and forlorn, he simply ignored it and carried on with his day.

 

* * *

 

 

A few days after his promotion, Thomas stood front of his small vanity mirror and scrutinised his appearance. Turning his head from left to right, he admired his clean, freshly shaven face. His skin was smooth to touch, like bone china and was in far better condition than Bates, who was as rough and weathered as stone. A faint crease was beginning to form between Thomas’s eyebrows and it bothered him a little, but it was barely visible so it wasn’t a problem. He would just need to stop frowning as often. He was still young and healthy, to a degree. He was a little pale, but he had always been pale, it couldn’t be helped. As a child, he had often overheard his relatives and schoolmasters speaking to his parents, inquiring about his diet and whether he spent enough time playing outside in the sun. When he had first arrived at Downton as a lad, Mrs Patmore had remarked that Thomas needed a hot dinner and cup of tea to put some colour into his cheeks. He was an attractive sort of pale nevertheless - almost. He used to be at least, before the purple bags under his eyes had become more prominent. Sleep had not been his friend since the war. It suited him, however, his complexion. The Duke of Crowborough had once likened him to Dorian Grey, stating that Thomas only needed to be fair-haired to complete Wilde’s description and Thomas had glowed with pride for weeks. He closer resembled Count Dracula nowadays, but vampires were considered to be devastatingly seductive. Their deathly pale appearance and gothic beauty fascinated some.

“I can be seductive when I want to be,” Thomas mused. “And I suit being pale. I still get a few looks, don’t’ I?”

The grocer’s wife still blushed whenever he smiled at her and he can make the day maids flutter and giggle with a cheeky wink. Lady Edith still can’t quite manage to meet his eye, even to this day which highly amused him.

Two pairs of heavy footsteps trotted past Thomas’s door. One of the boys had a slightly lighter gait than the other and by the sound of their twittering, they were bickering. Thomas shook his head, amused. The hall boys were up then, disagreeing with one another already and it wasn’t even seven o’clock.

Turning his attention back to his reflection, Thomas ran his tongue over his front teeth and admired his mouth. His lips were his favourite feature and Thomas was happy to see that they were plump and red, like cherries. His mouth had always drawn attention and he was grateful that he had inherited his mother's colouring.

“Well,” Thomas said quietly, “that’s everything.”

Nothing was out of line. He looked perfectly fine – he looked good, actually. He looked handsome, this was clear, so why was he still not content with himself? It was a puzzle. Flickering his eyes upwards, Thomas was drawn to his hair.

Perhaps it was his hairstyle?

His hair was perfectly combed and parted on the side. There was nothing unusual about it and it was fashionable for young men to wear their hair like this. Nearly all of the better dressed young lads in the village, including the hall boys, wore their hair in a similar style. Men of the middle and upper classes wore their hair in the same style. It as a smart cut, perfect for the young.

Suddenly, Thomas had a revelation.

“I’m not a lad anymore though, am I? I’m a valet, not a footman. I’ve been to war.” Thomas said out loud.

He needed a more mature hairstyle, a cut that was a little different to the styles worn by the rest of the youths. Now he was a valet, he couldn’t sport the same hairstyle as the hall boys! He wasn't a rich playboy either, he was a senior member of staff for heavens sake. How did the mature mean style their hair?

Poor Mr Mosley had barely any hair left so he was no source of inspiration. Mr Branson’s hair was very similar to Thomas’s current style, the only difference being the length. Branson’s hair was shorter by a centimetre or so, but Thomas didn’t want to cut his hair any shorter. Carson’s hair was thinning now and Thomas didn’t want to copy him in the first place, so he was ruled out. He couldn’t look to Mr Crawley either as his hair had too much of a curl to it; Thomas had very straight hair. Mr Bates had always swept his hair back with pomade. Now there was an idea!

Could Thomas do the same? Of course, his hair was thicker and more voluminous, but he would probably look rather dapper if he tailored his hair into a similar style. He loathed copying Bates but the man was onto something with his hairstyle. He could always sweep his hair back to the side if he wanted to. Yes, he would do that.

He picked up his comb and gently dipped it into his favourite pomade, then set to work.

 

 

“My, don’t you look smart, Mr Barrow,” Mrs Hughes complimented him at his breakfast.

Mr Carson turned his attention to the newly appointed valet and gave Thomas a curt nod of approval. It was probably the first genuine compliment Thomas had ever received from the man. He felt rather chuffed to be signalled out.

Even O’Brien chimed in, “You look the part.”

She was teasing him a little, but there was no hint of malice in her words, in fact she even looked somewhat proud. The woman was getting soft in her old age.

Thomas smiled, bashful and smug all at once.

 

Yes, he most certainly did look the part.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed this little short one-shot.  
> Please feel free to comment, I always read any I recieve and I try to reply to everyone.
> 
> I'm so glad I was able to write this.  
> My life is topsy-turvy at the moment and everything is going wrong, and I mean EVERYTHING.
> 
> I may not have a home for awhile so I'll be sofa surfing for a bit, so I may not be able to update any of my stories.  
> I'm in the middle of finishing off the final chapter for my Darlings Buds of 2016 series about Thomas and Jimmy's life as a couple in the 21st Century. I'm half-way through writing their wedding.  
> If anyone is following that series, I will try to update A New Chapter asap.


End file.
